Shattered
by SaiyanWarrior200
Summary: On that day, Sakura's kunai plunged into Sasuke's back killing him and ending The Uchiha Clan. His death and the ramifications of what has happened that day has devastated the once unbreakable bond and friendship between herself and Naruto.
1. Chapter 1

He looked on at the lone headstone before him, staring at it as the sky was filled with grey clouds overhead. He stood there silent like a statue as he looked on at the headstone as it was over a grave. The figure stood there his eyes fixed on it as he stared at the headstone that had a name written over it.

He recalled it, every each and lasting second of the moment that had happened. Too fast for him to react, and was too slow to try and stop it. He saw it happen in his mind rewinding and watching it over and over. An image that would not leave

The Kunai plunging deep into his back, the look of shock on his face as he felt it go past his skin and the poison from the weapon seeping into his vital areas from his lungs to his heart as blood poured out of the wound. How the strength left his body as he feel to the ground and how the life left him.

Sasuke Uchiha was dead, The Uchiha Clan was no more. Beneath the headstone was his body which had been buried by him.

Naruto looked on at the site, standing there immobile as he looked on at it, having stayed there for hours at a time looking on at the gravesite of his teammate. Reliving the final moments of Sasuke's life as he saw him die despite his attempts to keep him alive. He replayed that image in his mind over and over again recalling every last detail at what had transpired that day.

The blonde stood there looking on at the site wondering just how it was that it came to this, that Sasuke was dead and everything he went through had been for nothing. It was no more than a week since that time, when life had left him forever.

Naruto continued to look on at it his eyes locked on, not blinking.

From a distance away, another person stood there watching on at Naruto. The female figure looked on at him, having been watching him for nearly as long as he had been standing there looking at the headstone.

Sakura watched on as she stared ahead as Naruto stood guard over it. Having been there every day for hours at a time. The person who was buried beneath it.

He was dead because of her. She too had the memories and images of what had transpired in The Land of Iron

Sakura had killed Sasuke, she had slain him with a Kunai laced with a special poison. She had delivered the fatal blow to him stabbing him in the back with it just before he could unleash an attack. She had taken it upon herself to end it and seeing no other option had used the dagger to stop him

Sakura brought a hand up and envisioned them still, with Sasuke's blood on them. It seemed as though the Uchiha's blood was remaining on her hands.

"How long are you going to stand there and spy on me Sakura?" Naruto asked speaking outloud breaking her thoughts as he was not looking back at her. Sakura dropped her hand and looked on at him, odds were he knew that she was there this whole time

"Murderer." He said to her in a soft whisper. "You're a murderer." He repeated disdain in his voice as he looked on at Sakura. "I can't believe you, you would stoop to such a level, you killed him." He

"Yes," Sakura admitted to him. "I did kill him." She said as she was the one, she had plunged the poison tainted kunai into Sasuke's back, ending his life. She had took it upon herself to do it

She saw no other option, words would not get through to Sasuke no matter how hard they tried or begged him to stop. He was set on his path that he had chosen to take, and so, to spare anyone, especially Naruto the anguish of the only thing that could be done to stop him, Sakura had killed him.

She saw no other way and remembered the last look in his eyes as he stared at them before he fell into death's embrace.

It took everything to keep Naruto from exploding then and there as he looked on at her.

"You ruined everything Sakura, it's because of you that this happened." He told her his voice low but filled with anger and rage. "I was going to bring him back! I was going to help him and end the pain that he was going through. I could've fixed everything and made it the way life was before." He said his eyes piercing through her. "But you had to ruin everything with what you did. Team 7 is dead because of you Sakura!" Naruto claimed to her. "Why couldn't you have just kept out of what was going on? I was reaching through to him, I was close to getting him to stop! I was proving to him that I could shoulder the burden and pain he felt within him with what he had gone through."

"But you killed him! You killed Sasuke and ruined everything I've worked for, I was going to bring him back and make things right! I promised that I would remember? A promise of a lifetime, that we'd be a team again just like we were and should be instead of what happened."

"Naruto." Sakura said

"Don't speak, you don't have the right to talk!' Naruto interrupted venom in his voice as he looked on at her. "I could've fixed it all, make amends for what had happened between Konoha and his Family, so that what happened would've been forgotten and forgiven and our lives could go back to normal, but thanks to you that can never happen. He and his family is thought of as nothing more than another common criminal because of you."

Sakura looked on at him as his words had cut her deeper than any blade, had battered her body more than any blow. Sakura lowered her head looking down at the ground. Looking on at her, Naruto expected her to cry.

But tears did not come or fall down…

"Naruto," She finally said to him in a solemn voice after several long moments. "You wish to be Hokage don't you?" She asked him and he looked on at her as Sakura's head was still down.

"You know that, you know that I want to be Hokage more than anything." He told her as he scowled at her.

"…Naruto, nobody would ever want you as Hokage." Sakura said and lifted her head to look at him and her eyes were filled with disgust as she looked on at him.

"What'd you say?!" Naruto said in response at her words.

"You would be a terrible Hokage, you'd doom the Leaf and Konoha if you was." She told him and her voice had changed. "You being it would bring nothing but disaster and ruin to everyone around you with how you act." Sakura told him as she glared at him. "Right now, you've proven yourself to be the most unworthy person to be Hokage, Teuchi, who has done nothing but make different types of ramen his entire life would be a better person to be it than you." Sakura said to Naruto. "You say you was close to getting through to Sasuke. The way I saw it, you were just going to stand there with a bullseye on your chest and going to let Sasuke to ram his Chidori through and kill you. Your words weren't having any effect on him and you're a fool to think that he was interested in you barring or sharing his burden, the only thing he was interested in was killing you and everyone else." Sakura said to him

"I know what happened to his clan and what he went through and I'm sorry but that does not give him the right to act the way he did! He proved himself no better with what he was trying to do and you know it! His family was intent on performing a coup which would've left thousands dead, possibly you and me as well during it!"

"Shut up!" Naruto snapped at her. "You don't have any idea what you're talking about!" He accused her

"He was going to kill us Naruto!" She responded back to him raising her voice so that she would not be drowned out, she would be heard and he would listen to her words whether he wanted to or not. "He already murdered and killed others that we saw him do it including a member of his own team. There's a line Naruto!" She exclaimed to him. "A line that you cannot cross and if you do there's no going back and Sasuke stepped over it with no regrets whatsoever! The same line Orochimaru, Sasori, and several others crossed, he crossed it as well! You saw how he acted! You saw him try to murder me! How he would kill you and Kakashi with no hesitation at all! Nothing mattered to him anymore! He said that he would kill every last person in Konoha, down to the last infant because his clan was stopped before they could perform a coup. And yet you still acted as though everything was just fine and we're on E Class Missions and this is all just an argument over a broken shuriken! You blatantly ignored what he was trying to do and the look of madness in his eyes! You acted as though if you ignored the problem it will go away even if its staring you in the face! People were dying and being hurt with what was happening and we all knew what needed to be done and instead you chose to cover your ears and act as though you're not hearing it because it's not what you want to hear! Is that what you planned on doing if you became Hokage? Ignore the problems because you don't want to face reality and see them for what they are? Real Hokage material you've shown yourself to be." She said a sneer of disgust on her face. "You're nothing but talk."

Sakura pointed at his hitai-ate her finger trembling with rage. "You do not deserve that, you do not deserve to wear that! There have been better ninja than you who have worn that and they should wear it instead of you. You're a disgrace to any person in the world who has ever called themselves Shinobi with how you act!" She accused him.

"How you cried and threw a tantrum in front of everyone at the fact that things weren't going your way as we all agreed that Sasuke had to be stopped before it was too late, how you refused to do anything! I took it upon myself to do so because you were more concerned with bawling and crying because your feelings were hurt!"

"You're a hypocrite!" Sakura said as her eyes burned as she looked on accusing him. "You…you who are so quick to demonize and call people monsters for what they've done, but Sasuke somehow gets a pass? No he doesn't Naruto! You don't get a pass in life because you was friends with someone at one time, nor are you forgiven for the deeds you've committed. If that's the case Orochimaru himself should be forgiven if he was our friend as well wouldn't he? Would Kakuzu and Hidan be forgotten about killing Asuma as well? Or Gato huh? Remember him?" She said recalling to him everyone they had ever fought against and faced from when they first started as Ninja to now. "What he did to Wave and brutally killing the man who Inari thought of like a father in front of his own eyes? Would you be willing to forgive and sweep it under the rug as well if they were our 'friends' and half heartedly mumble sorry? Answer Me!" She demanded to know. "Why were you so intent on giving Sasuke a get out of jail free card when he proved himself that he was going to be no better than them? What gives him the right to be forgiven? Because he was our friend? Friendship doesn't mean anything if that person tries to kill and harm innocent people who have done nothing to them." She told him

"So go ahead, sit there in the dirt, pout and whine like a child if it makes you feel better, I don't care." Sakura said to him "I made my choice with what happened that day and if I had the opportunity to relive that moment, I would do it again with no regrets." She told Naruto coldly. "I'm actually glad that I did it, that I killed him instead of watching you freeze and do nothing. Better that I have Sasuke's blood on my hands than for you to not do anything and turn a blind eye to what's happening." She said to him.

"Goodbye Naruto…this maybe the last time we ever talk to one another. Despite how you claim and think I also wanted Team 7 to be together again. I'm sorry…I truly am, that things didn't go the way either of us wanted them to." Sakura said and turning around walked away not once stopping or turning her head or shifting her eyes to look back at him.

Naruto watched her go not moving from the spot as he looked on at Sakura watching her leave


	2. Chapter 2

_The chirping sound of hundreds of birds filled the air as sparks flew from the arm of the raven haired Shinobi his eyes glowing red and filled with tomoe in them as he prepared his attack._

 _Sasuke Uchiha looked on his face expressionless as he charged up his attack, preparing to deliver it onto his foe before him, no hesitation was on his face at what he was about to do._

 _Naruto stood there his feet planted on the ground, making no move to try to block or defend himself from the attack, ready to take Sasuke's jutsu head on. If that move hit him, it would tear right through his heart and kill him on impact. Yet Naruto made no motion to try and stop him as his arms were to his side. He was utterly defenseless as the move would be coming at him head on._

 _Looking on, The Pinkette saw what was going to happen right now, Naruto was going to let himself be killed by Sasuke. She had seen what had happened how Naruto refused to fight Sasuke, pleading with him to return with them to Konoha but Sasuke had only sneered at him in disgust._

 _Across from her was the dropped kunai laced with poison and it was the weapon that she had brought with her when she had sought out Sasuke and had missed her chance before. She looked on at it and then back at them as Sasuke was finishing charging up his attack and preparing to kill the standing like a statue Naruto._

 _Sakura seeing no other option took the kunai in hand and despite the fact that she was shaking hardened her resolve knowing everything rested on her. She ran at Sasuke who did not notice her._

 _Sasuke prepared to unleash the attack on Naruto who still made no movement to defend himself or stop the attack._

 _The kunai went straight into Sasuke's back piercing through his clothes and skin. The Chidori stopped fizzling out and a look of shock went in Sasuke's eyes at what just happened._

" _Sasuke!" Naruto shouted as he saw what just happened and the life seemed to leave his body as Sasuke feel to his knees and his eyes turned back to normal. He looked at him and turning his head glanced at Sakura before seemingly nodding and his eyes shut as he feel to the ground._

" _NO!" Naruto rushed to him trying to stop the flow of blood but it was no use as he was dead. He held his lifeless body in his arms before raising his head up to look at Sakura a stunned look on his face._

" _What have you done?"_

Sakura sat up sweat pouring off her body as she panted gasping for breath. She wiped her forehead as she pulled the blanket and covers off of her. She got out of bed setting her feet on the floor as her entire body glistened with sweat.

Taking a few deep breaths the pink haired medic calmed herself down. Only clad in a nightshirt and panties she looked on as she peered out her window and saw that it was dawn and the sun was beginning to crack over The Hokage Monument.

"Another night of it happening." She said with a sad smile as she relived the incident that had ended with Sasuke's death. Every night had been the same as it was haunting her. Images of the kunai plunging into his flesh, blood oozing out of the wound, Sasuke's face contorting in shock at the feeling of it going into him as his life was cut short by her hands. "Although its been a week I feel as though it had still just happened minutes ago." She mused as she walked over to her bathroom and flipped the switch on and looked at herself as she stood over the sink and faucet. She stared at her reflection in the mirror looking back at her.

She turned the water on and dipping her hands into the water began to scrub them, at a fast and hard pace. She continued doing so for several long minutes until she turned the water off and dried her hands off with a towel and looked on at them.

Although to a normal person her hands appeared clean, she saw something else on them still, no matter how many times she ran water or used lotion on them.

Blood…

Sakura sat down leaning against the wall of the room her arms wrapped around herself trembling a bit as the images continuously plagued her mind. "Will it ever go away?" She asked herself. "Will I always have it on my hands until the day that I die?"

Sakura was not the only one who was up at this early hour, Naruto stood at The Hokage Monument, standing on the head of the man who was revealed to be his Father, Minato Namikaze The Yondaime. Naruto stood there as a soft gust caused his blonde hair to stir.

Naruto had been there even before the sun began to raise which was doing so his back to it as he looked on at Konoha. Thoughts and images flowing through his mind at a rapid pace as he stood there. Like the Kunoichi he too had the dreams and memories of what happened.

"Sasuke, where are you at now?" Naruto asked after time had passed as he solemnly looked at the sky. "In the afterlife are you still filled with rage and fury, or have you finally found peace at last my friend?" He mused in a quiet tone as he thought of him. "How did it all come to this? You dead, Team 7 no more."

Image of a pink haired medic appeared in his mind and he pushed it out of his head.

"Sakura why, why couldn't you have just knocked him out?" He asked bitterly shaking his head even though he knew she wasn't there. "Killing should have only been the last resort, we could have brought him back and help him, put him on a leash if we have to. The two of us could've saved his soul and remove the pain that he was going through. But you killed him, everything we went through, all the trials and battles, the training, all done for nothing when his heart stopped." He said clutching a hand into a fist as his body shook

He thought about what she said and his face contorted into a scowl remembering what she said. She had no right to say that, to claim that nobody would want him as Hokage. "Damn it Sakura!" He cursed in anger as his teeth gritted. "What the hell do you know? You think you're so smart and you know everything? You ruined everything with what you did!" He shouted in fury. "Why don't you go ahead and become Hokage since you're so brilliant! Everyone else is so damn stupid to compare to you!" He exclaimed as he shouted at the heavens as he fell to his knees and slammed his fists onto the stone not caring that he bruised them from the force of the impact. "She had no right to say that, what gives her the right? The only dream she's ever had was of having his kids ever since she was put on the team with us three years ago!"

"I've been dreaming of becoming Hokage since before I could walk and worked my fingers to the bone in the hopes that one day I will become it, she's the fool! She doesn't know anything!" He shouted as rage burned inside of him anger towards Sakura and her statement to him.

"If this is how she wants it, that we no longer see one another fine! She can have it! I don't care! Forget her, I don't need her. I never needed her at all!" He said to himself as he turned and walked away.

The day went on as people went about their lives and as the sun passed overhead and midday approached a figure is shown staring at the headstone

Kakashi looked on at Sasuke's headstone, staring at it and recalling as well what had happened. The one eyed ninja thinking back of the events that transpired.

He saw Sasuke charging the attack and Naruto standing steadfast in his way, ready to take his jutsu full force. He remembered him rushing trying to stop the attack before it was too late.

Only for Sakura to appear behind Sasuke and stab him in the back with a kunai. The weapon killing him on contact. He saw Naruto frantically trying to stop the blood whilst Sakura weapon in hand looked on at him.

He had not talked with Naruto since then, the boy becoming anti social, nor had he seen Sakura any. Not even Ino had managed to talk to her. Both had been spotted around but any attempt to talk to them about the event had ended in failure.

Kakashi stood vigilante over the grave. Some had demanded that Sasuke not be buried in Konoha but he had been, his body buried in a small sector of the village that few went to. His headstone was the only marking here. Orders had been given that it was not to be desecrated. There was also talk of with the reveal of the coup his family had attempted to do that The Uchiha Manor be torn down and burned to the ground and the Clan wiped from the pages of Konoha and forgotten about. Kakashi did not think they would go to such extremes or that it would come to pass. The once proud and mighty Clan's name had been tarnished with the reports of what had happened, of how they were going to attempt a coup and take control of the village.

It had been hard the first time he had to bury someone on his team, this time wasn't any easier. "Perhaps I am cursed." He said with a dry chuckle at it all. He turned and walked away heading towards The Village.

As Kakashi made his way walking quietly through the streets a group of people walked through

"I can't believe that The Godaime's student killed off The last Uchiha." One man said referring to Sakura. "I guess she really is as good as her master." He said as he talked to others

"Let's hope she doesn't partake in gambling like she does." A woman mentioned. "Though wasn't it said that she was in love with him?"

"You try to kill me and I'm going to think twice about my feelings for you, it's a good thing, can you imagine meeting the guy who tried to kill you and you instantly fall to your knees and admit you still love him? One man said in a disgusted tone. "Though I can't believe they have buried him somewhere in Konoha."

"A grave's too good for the likes of him, should've just left his body for the crows to peck clean." Another said as the group walked away

Kakashi didn't say anything in response as they talked. He looked on and brought a hand up to his head and let out a deep sigh as he stopped at the hospital.

The sound of footsteps caught his attention and he turned his head and his lone eye widened in surprise as he saw someone approaching the hospital, someone he didn't expect to see.

"Sakura? What are you doing here?" He said to her as she made her way towards the building. "You know you've been ordered to not be here right now," He said to The Chunin who was in her outfit as she made her way. Ever since the incident she had been ordered not to do her duties at the hospital as she was in no condition mentally to be there, yet here she was.

"I have to be here, Sensei, it's better if I was instead of sitting at home on my butt doing nothing all day." She told him as she stopped before him. "I have much work that I've missed and need to do. So please, let me through." Sakura said to him.

"Sakura…" Kakashi said as she looked on at his female student. She appeared to be fine but he knew a façade when he saw one.

"I am a Medic and a good one at that, I can do a lot of good in there, so I'll be going now." Sakura said but Kakashi moved and positioned himself so to block her path causing her to frown at him.

"Listen, I know it's been rough and you've been through a lot, but all of us will persevere, Team 7-"

"Team 7 no longer exists." She interrupted him surprising him at her words. "It's no more and everyone knows it. We stopped being a team three years ago when we each went our separate paths. Naruto himself said that Team 7 is dead and it might as well be." She told him a cold tone in her voice.

"He said that?" Kakashi said stunned that he would say such a thing.

"Straight from the horse's mouth, he told me that yesterday, blaming me for it being no more and Sasuke's death. Never mind that the fact that he stood there with his mouth hanging open and drooling like an idiot while waiting for Sasuke to run him through and kill him." Sakura said with a bitter smile. "I guess he's going to keep on not taking responsibility for what's happened and ignore the problems. Your future Hokage, Ladies and Gentlemen." She claimed with a dismissive laugh.

"Sakura," Kakashi said amazed at her change of attitude. He could not believe that things had taken such a turn for the worse between her and Naruto.

"Kakashi do you remember that solo mission that you and I did, about a week before The Chunin Exams?" Sakura asked him. "I still remember it do you? It was just me and you because Sasuke had fallen ill and Naruto had injured himself performing a move and screwed it up nearly getting an concussion so it was just the two of us to do it. You kept me in the dark about what the mission was until we arrived there."

"I remember which one you are talking about." Kakashi said to her and Sakura stared at him.

"When we got there to it we were charged with putting down rabid dogs that had caught a disease and there was nothing to be done for them, they had to be killed in order to make sure they couldn't infect anyone with what they had. While I was shocked at what we were to do you accepted it and without a word cut them down. After the mission was over you took me aside and told me although it was painful to do so, there was no other choice as it was better for them to die than to risk others being hurt by them and to end their suffering, the same goes if they were humans, even if we were close to them and they were our friends at one time, do you remember that? It was one of the rules that comes with being a ninja you taught me." Sakura said as she recalled the incident and lesson she had been taught.

"Yes, I do." Kakashi said to her as he remembered it.

"I took those words to heart Sensei, vowing to remember them and to think of an enemy the same way even if one day before I had called them friend. When I saw Sasuke and the state that he was in, with how far he had gone and the look of madness in his eyes I knew he was like a rabid beast that had gone wild and if not stopped could affect and bring pain to others. Not only me, you, Naruto, but everyone in Konoha who he believed should be punished because his family was stopped because he had this crazy idea in his head that we were all laughing and celebrating over them being no more. So I envisioned him as one of them and plunged the Kunai into his back so that he would be stopped and end the pain he was going through as there was nothing that could be done to save him and you knew it as well didn't you?" Sakura asked him and Kakashi didn't say anything in response.

"Tell me Kakashi, what you taught me that day. Is that a rule we should follow, or only whenever it suits us?" She asked him and once more Kakashi had no answer for her. Silence was the only response that came from him as he looked on at her.

"I see," Sakura said and walked past him heading into the hospital


	3. Chapter 3

It seemed at the Hospital, normalcy was in play. People went about their shifts, dealing with tending to those who were sick and had appointments. Some were on break eating lunch in the cafeteria whilst others were preparing to go home as their shift was over.

Sakura walked through the hallways having taken a tray of medicine to a patient. It seemed as though that this was the one place in the world that she could be herself it seemed like and not concern herself with everything that had.

She could forget about everything that had happened, none of it mattered here. For the first time she felt as though life was back to the way things used to be and be at peace.

She didn't want to hear about all the stuff that had occurred, the crisis that had been averted, how she had been praised for her actions. All Sakura Haruno wanted to do was go about her work and get things done and not worry about anything else. That's all that mattered to her right now

She walked through the hallways and passed by a room but something caught her eye, she walked back and peered into the room looking on at it.

A body, covered by a thick cloth draped over it was seen on the table

Although she shouldn't she felt as if she had to see who it was that was on the table as her feet going against her mind stepped forwards as she began to approach the table. She stood in front of the covered body. By the look of it, the person underneath wasn't any older than she was, a teenager having not even gone into the phase of the adult.

She hadn't received any word or heard anything about anyone dying, why was this here instead of at the morgue?

She approached the body and removed the cover and her eyes widened at who she saw on it.

Sasuke Uchiha, Sasuke himself was lying on the table before her. But, this was impossible, he was buried, his body had been put in the grave. Sakura looked on at him as even in death he still seemed consumed with fury.

"How are you here?" Sakura said shock in her voice as she stared at him. She had seen his body be buried, how was it that he was here? She looked on at the body feeling the hate emanating from him. Even in death he was still consumed by fury.

Sasuke's head suddenly turned and his eyes opened and he smiled darkly at her as he stared right up at her.

Sakura gasped and backed away at what she just saw. Suddenly a hand reached out and grabbed her by the shoulder and a voice went into her ear.

"Sakura!" The voice said and she turned and saw who it was, it was a female with blonde hair in a purple outfit.

"Ino?" Sakura said as she looked on at her.

"You've been spacing out there for quite some time," Ino said to her. "You were just standing there like a statue just now." The blonde stated to her

"Sorry," Sakura apologized to her. "I just have a lot on my mind right now." She said and looked back. She looked and saw that Sasuke was no longer there, the table was empty he had never been there, just her mind still playing tricks on her with his death. First the blood on her hands and now him appearing at the hospital.

"C'mon," Ino said to her. "Let's get outta here."

"I can't leave, my shifts not over with. I still have to be here for an hour." Sakura replied to the blonde

"Nothing's going on now, you're not needed here right now. Let's go and have some fun." Ino said and took her by the arm.

The two left the hospital and headed to Ino's house and were in her room the two drinking tea.

The two talked, well Ino did most of the talking. Sakura only said a few words or sentences at a time.

Looking on Ino knew that Sakura was not alright. She may not be the most intelligent person in Konoha and was no genius but she knew when something was off and Sakura was clearly affected right now.

"Sakura, please say something." She said in an almost pleading tone. "I can't stand to see you like this. This isn't healthy for you to be like this." Ino said almost tempted to reach over and flick her forehead just to try and get an reaction out of her. As Sakura only sat there aimlessly drinking her tea. Ino let out a sigh and went to put her cup up.

"Ino," Sakura asked the blonde who turned and looked at her. "You hate me don't you?" She said lifting her head up to look into her eyes.

Shock and disbelief went into Ino's blue eyes at what she just said. "What?! No! I don't hate you Sakura! What on earth made you possible think I hate you?" She exclaimed stunned that she would say such a thing.

"Not even after what has happened you don't hate me? With what happened with Sasuke?" Sakura asked her.

Ino winced at her words, knowing what she was talking about. Sasuke was her first crush that she had the two of them becoming rivals for his non existent affection and had not believed what Shikamaru had told her of what had happened in The Land of Iron at what had transpired there. That he had died by Sakura's hands until she had found it out herself. She had saw the body.

"Sakura, Sakura listen to me, what happened back there with Sasuke wasn't your fault." She told her. "I don't blame you for what happened, nor do I hate you. Am I upset, yeah I am. I didn't ever think that things would happen like this but I don't hold it against you. I'd be a scumbag if I did and acted that way towards you."

Sakura looked on at her and faintly smiled the first sign of life that Ino saw.

"He's still here." Sakura said and Ino looked on. "Sasuke he's still here."

"What do you mean." Ino said and Sakura held out her hand asking her what she saw. "I don't see anything."

"You don't, but I see his blood." She said and Ino's eyes widened in alarm at what she just said. "I see his blood on my hands still, no matter how hard I wash or scrub them, Sasuke's blood is still on them. And what you saw earlier, that was me seeing his body on the table."

"I think it would be best if you saw a psychiatrist or went to therapy Sakura, with all that's happened maybe that would help you if you did. You've clearly been affected by all that's happened and not all there." Ino said concern in her voice for her best friend and the state she was in.

"I may have to." Sakura replied as memories entered her mind.

"It's not good for you at all to be like this, does Naruto and Kakashi know about this?"

Sakura let out a bitter laugh. "Naruto doesn't care what I'm going through." She said to her. "He's chosen his path and I've chosen mine."

"Aw geez, how did this all happen?" Ino said and sniffed. Her best friend in this hallow shell. "What on Earth is Naruto thinking not doing anything to support you now?!"

Sakura thought back to an earlier time at The Land of Iron, before she had killed Sasuke. The meeting and conversation she had with Naruto.

"Despite what he claimed back there, it wasn't a lie what I said to Naruto." Sakura said and Ino looked on her curiosity perked. "I did love him."

A gasp escaped Ino's lips at the words that came out of Sakura's mouth just then.

"I did, I was in love with Naruto. He was the one I was closest to and I looked at him in a different light with my feelings beyond that of a friend. That was no lie no matter what he claims."

"And what happened back there, with Sasuke?" Ino asked

"Was to save him. I did it to save him as I couldn't fathom the thought of him dying, not after all he's put himself through, all the pain he's endured. To just let himself be killed."

"But he chose to blame me and resent me for what I did." Sakura said anger in her voice. "Called me a murderer and said I ruined everything. I wonder if this was the true Naruto, the one he kept hidden inside all this time. What did he want me to do, just stand there uselessly and cry like I've done before whilst he lets himself get killed?" She said shaking her head. "I wasn't going to stand there and watch his life end so needlessly. I made the choice the moment I saw what was going to happen."

"So what's going to happen now?" Ino asked. "Between the two of you?"

Sakura shook her head. "I honestly don't know, and part of me wonders if I should care what happens between us. I told him the other day that that was the last time we'd likely ever see one another. I don't know what'll happen. Maybe he'll become an ANBU and go off on missions never returning to Konoha. Maybe I'll resign from my position and become a civilian. Part of me is tempted to do that after all I've been through as a Ninja. I don't know Ino, I don't know."

Ino wrapped her arms around Sakura comforting and hugging her friend for all she's been through, knowing she needed what care she could give her right now.

The sound of a fist hitting wood was heard as the scene switched to the training grounds of Konoha. Straw and pieces of wood was seen on the ground as they littered the area.

"ARRGHHH!" Naruto shouted as he slammed his fist into the battered training dummy he had setup. His fist collided with it and smashed and broke it into pieces, falling off the stand.

Naruto looked on at it as that was the sixth one he had destroyed today. He had been here for hours, since he couldn't go out on missions or train with all that was happening right now, he had taken some training dummies and taking it out on them. Landing hard fast blows and kicks to them as he had been using them to take his mind off of other things.

He walked over to where the others he had taken were setup and grabbing one carried it over to the stand and set it up. Getting into a stance he took a deep breath as he drew his fist back ready to begin again.

A substance suddenly covered over his hand stopping him.

"What the?!" He said and turning his hand looked and saw that his arm was covered in sand.

Sand? But that could only mean one thing.

"Are you intent on bloodying your knuckles until the sun sets?" A voice said and Naruto looked and saw the person who said it.

"Gaara?" He said looking on at The Kazekage who was standing on a hill above looking on at him, apparently having watched him train for the past while. "What are you doing here?"

Gaara's sand went away and the former jinchuurki walked down the hill towards Naruto.

"A regular man would've broken every bone in his hands with what you've been doing." Gaara noted.

"You didn't answer my question."

"I've come to Konoha to see what will happen and who will be selected as The next Hokage if The Godaime does not recover soon. I've also come here on a personal matter."

Naruto stared at him before realizing who he was talking about.

"Me? You've come all the way out here just to see me?" He said to him and the red headed Kage nodded.

"I've come to see you my friend, to see if you are well."

"Feh, you know me. Never been better." Naruto said a smirk on his face.

"Naruto, has anyone ever told you that you're a terrible liar?" Gaara responded to him. "I may not be the right person who knows emotions but even I can tell when someone's hiding something." He told him and Naruto frowned at his remark.

"What do you want Gaara?" Naruto asked an impatient tone in his voice.

"I heard about what happened back at The Land of Iron, what happened when you confronted Sasuke." Gaara told him and Naruto gritted his teeth.

"I don't wanna talk about it." He told Gaara turning his back to him.

"I know you are sad for his death Naruto, that you didn't want him to die." Gaara continued on. "But you cannot take your frustration out on your other teammate for what she did."

Naruto gritted his teeth thinking of her. "I don't wanna waste any of my time talking or thinking about Sakura." He stated to Gaara.

"You believe she feels the same way you do?"

"Why should I care if she does?" Naruto snapped in an angry tone of voice. "I'd be happy if I don't ever see or speak to her again for the rest of my life. I don't need her, not on missions, not as a teammate and certainly not as a friend."

"Do you believe that honestly for one second?" Gaara asked him a skeptical look in his green eyes

Naruto looked on at him and lowered his head and let out a heavy sigh.

"I know I shouldn't hold this anger against her, that doing so is stupid and immature." Naruto said with a shake of his head. "But I just can't let it go. I had everything planned and set, Sasuke would've been brought back and we'd all be happy again. I did care for her and was ready to give up my feelings for her if that meant she'd be happy with Sasuke back since she had always loved him, no matter how much I cared for her."

"I don't know, maybe I really am a naive idiot." He said shaking his head. "This is the last thing that I wanted to happen between the three of us. I didn't want us to be ostracized and at each other's throats. And a part of me is saying to go find Sakura and grab her in a hug and forgive her for what she's done and say I'm sorry for everything I've said to her." He said to him.

"And what is the other part saying?"

"I'm not sure you wanna know." Naruto replied dryly.

"This is a path of self destruction my friend." Gaara said to him. "I know this rage that is inside of you very well. Sakura has done nothing to incur your anger despite how you feel. She did what she did to protect you, not to make you upset with her." He said and Naruto lifted his head.

"By killing Sasuke and rendering everything I tried to do for nothing?!" He exclaimed anger flashing in his eyes. "I promised to bring him back! So that we'd be together again like we should've been!"

"Naruto your most admirable trait is the fact that you want to see goodness inside of everyone no matter who they are, such as myself." Gaara said to him. "But, it can also be a flaw as well. By striving to only see the goodness inside a person's heart you don't see the darkness within either. I have read and heard that The Third, Sarutobi saw Orochimaru as The next Hokage, believing that he would become the greatest Hokage in history but did not see what he was doing to people with The Cursed Seal and what he was doing. The evil inside Orochimaru destroyed what good was in him he once had that Sarutobi could no longer allow himself to turn a blind eye to it. Sakura saw the same thing with Sasuke."

"But that's different, Sasuke didn't torture and experiment on people against their will." Naruto stated.

"He had killed and harmed others beforehand Naruto, innocent lives such as the Samurai in Iron and attempted to murder The Kages including an attempt on me. He even attempted to kill you and the others at Grass when you met him for the first time in years from what I've been told. I have heard what happened to his teammate and associate, killing her because she was in the way of his attack. You know that he announced that he would kill every last person in Konoha and burn it to the ground Naruto, down to the last child." Gaara told him. "That doesn't exactly sound like a type of person I would want as a friend."

"I would've stopped him!"

"Would you?" Gaara asked him. "If you had defeated him and he ran off, what made you think he wouldn't try again? And a third time? Or a fourth time? How would you have stopped him when he was intent on doing so and no words would stop him?"

Naruto was quiet not saying anything.

"How would you?"

"I don't know okay?!" Naruto exclaimed to him. "I don't know how I was going to stop him! I didn't think that far."

Gaara put a hand on his shoulder not out of pity but of support.

"Naruto you're the first person who taught and showed me that the world is filled with people who aren't out to hurt you like I've believed it was. Do you still believe your own words that you told me? As you mentioned earlier you are torn between what you wish to do, the two sides are fighting one another for control of what you do. The first part wants you to hate Sakura and cast her out of your life for what she had done, the second wants you to forgive Sakura and let her know that what happened is nobody's fault. Not hers, not yours, not Sasuke's. It would not surprise me if she is feeling the same conflict inside her body as well right now that you are going through."

"You're probably right." Naruto said and smirked at him. "Damn it Gaara, when the hell did you quit being a Kage and became a Shrink?" He said and Gaara let out a scoff of amusement.

"I don't know what's going to happen now, what'll happen between myself and Sakura. Maybe one day the bonds between us will be fixed but it's going to take a long time I'm afraid. I don't know if I can forgive her for what she did." He said solemnly looking up at the cloudy sky.

"If the two of you do not reconcile and continue to cast the other out, than I'm afraid neither of you will ever find peace in your souls." Gaara informed him. "I hope for both your sakes that that is not the path that you two go down."

Gaara turned and left heading back into Konoha leaving Naruto there.

The blonde thought about what he said and sat down and let out a long sigh


	4. Chapter 4

"Nice sky out today." The ninja said to the younger ninja who leaned aimlessly on the railing and staring up at the sky. "About time we got some blue sky instead of all cloudy and grey." Kakashi said looking on

Naruto said nothing in response as if Kakashi wasn't even there.

"I've been hearing talk, there's some rumors going around about the empty Hokage seat." He said regarding the vacancy that had happened due to Tsunade falling in a coma during the attack. With her in no condition to lead, as well as the incident with the late Danzo, nominees were being selected to see who would become The Sixth Hokage.

"No one yet knows who's gonna be the next Hokage, right now Koharu and Homaru are working together as interims to lead Konoha but its only temporary until a permanent replacement is found. Talk has been that Hiashi Hyuga is being considered as well as others with experience in leading to be the Rokudaime."

"That so?" Naruto replied and Kakashi looked on at him.

"What? You're not going to suggest that you should be Hokage?" Kakashi asked him and didn't get any response. "Sigh, Naruto you're becoming a very boring person to be around you know that?" He said to him but again got no answer. "Okay Naruto, enough is enough." He said and Naruto turned his head to look at him a blank look on his features.

"Go to her." He said and there was finally emotion in Naruto's face, a brief flash of anger but was all that was seen.

"No." Naruto said turning his head back.

"You cannot keep on doing this Naruto, how long are you two going to keep this up?" Kakashi said to him. Naruto and Sakura had avoided each other this whole time "This is getting old Naruto, for everyone's sakes you need to stop this."

"I've already gotten this talk before from Gaara." Naruto told him not in the mood to hear it again. All he wanted was to be left to his own devices so he could sort it out himself.

"And you'll likely hear it again and again if this continues." Kakashi said as he wasn't in the mood to play around. "You two have got to stop these antics between you. I know a part of you hates her for what she did and refuses to associate with her, but that part is leading you down a path of self destruction with no happy ending for anyone."

"Is there really a Happy Ending at all anymore?" Naruto asked bitterly.

"Don't start the Emo act now, please Naruto, it was hard enough when…whenever he did it and I don't think I could take you doing it as well." Kakashi said to him.

Naruto let out a grunt of annoyance as he still was refusing to talk with his teammate, the one who had ended Sasuke's life back in Iron.

"I…I just don't know." Naruto said as he leaned over the fence his eyes shut. "I just don't know if I can do it. It hurts…"

"I know, I've dealt with the pain you've gone through as well." Kakashi said to him. "But Sakura is hurting as well, just as much as you are. The both of you must work together in order to stop this pain."

"Fine, I'll talk to her." Naruto said. "But she's going to have to come to me. I am not going to drag myself before her just so she can gloat over how she was right all along over what she did. If she wants to talk, I'm more than happy to talk, but she has to come to me first before I will."

"You two are so thick headed. Jiraiya and Tsunade weren't nearly as bad as you two are. But at least you're starting to put some effort in." Kakashi murmured before leaving and Naruto winced a bit remembering the man who had also died not long ago. Another burden on his soul he was taking as he had lost the closest thing he had in living family had died also. Why is it that people he gets bonds with always wind up dying? Could he not save even one of them…

His fist slammed against the railing a look of anger on his face. "Damn it!" He swore. Why? Why did it all have to come to this?

He thought about how things should've gone instead. He would've taken Sasuke back home, they'd become Team 7 again as Sasuke would no longer be obsessed with power and things would go back to normal. He didn't care if Sakura went back to loving him, ignoring how he felt about her just so long as everything was how it should be.

But now none of it would ever happen again.

Sakura was at the hospital and had got done checking on The Godaime Tsunade who still was in a coma like state. Her breathing was regular but she made no movements or any sounds as she laid motionless on the bed machines hooked up to her registering her breathing and heart rate.

She stopped in the empty bathroom and looked on as she washed her hands, scrubbing as hard as she could to get it off but it still stayed to them. Putting it out of her mind, she thought of her Mentor who was like a second Mother to her.

Tsunade's body was stable and should recover after collapsing from exhaustion from all the chakra she put out to protect everyone when Pein had attacked, but no one knew when she would awaken from her coma. Days, Weeks, Months, it was anyone's guess when she would.

She looked at the mirror and saw Sasuke's reflection there a leering smile on his face as he looked on at her, mocking her as always. He continued to haunt her every day. Sakura slowly closed her eyes.

She looked on back at the Land of Iron seeing Sasuke charging his Chidori and Naruto standing his ground she watched as he finished it and could only stare helplessly as he ran Naruto through it, killing him on contact, ripping right through him and piercing through his chest. Naruto said nothing as blood poured from his mouth as his eyes were empty of life as he fell onto his back a gaping hole where his chest once was.

Sakura could only look on horror in her eyes as Sasuke looked on at Naruto's corpse for a brief second and turned around and saw her another Chidori being charged.

Sakura could only stand there petrified to the spot as he rushed at her and delivered the blow piercing right through her body, shredding her.

Sakura's eyes snapped open as she breathed heavily, sweat glistening all over her forehead and face as she imagined what could've happened, if she had not done anything. Sasuke would've killed Naruto back there, and after that he would've killed her and everyone else, one by one.

He would've hunted them down and spare no one of Konoha after killing her and Naruto, no matter their age or if they even knew about what had happened. Ino, her parents, Kakashi, and others. He would've massacred them all without a single word or remorse. Not even young defenseless children would he spare.

"I had to do it, I just had to kill him." She said her head down repeating the words to herself. Regardless of how she felt about him at one time, she was the only one who could've stopped him. Naruto wasn't able to, it was all up to her to stop his madness.

"Sakura," A voice said catching her attention and she saw a young woman standing there. "How are you feeling?" Shizune asked.

"I'm fine." Sakura lied in response. "I'm alright Shizune." She said to the light dark haired medic.

"You've done enough for today, you should go home and take a break." Shizune said as Sakura had been running herself ragged as it was starting to effect her appearance. Doing anything she could to take her mind off things.

"No, there's still plenty of work I need to do. Until Tsunade wakes up and demands a drink there's still work I must do."

"That's an order Sakura." Shizune said to her. "Go home and get some rest. You're no good to anyone at all half alive."

"I'm fine Shizune." Sakura said and irritation was creeping in her voice and Shizune looked on at her.

"You and Naruto have got to talk to one another." Shizune told her and that set Sakura off as that was the last thing she wanted to hear.

"Why?" Sakura responded a glare in her eyes. "So he can blame me again? Call me a murderer? Refuse to accept responsibility like he has all his life?" She said to Shizune. "All his life he's blamed others for whenever he screws up. From failing the academy to not being promoted to whenever he loses a fight, it's always someone else's fault that it went wrong, never his!" She said her green eyes burning. "He's nothing more than a selfish brat who refuses to grow up and you know it!"

"He's suffering."

"And I'm not?" Sakura said to her in anger at how she wasn't even regarding her in the matter. "How do you think I've felt at all this past time? Do you know the dreams I've gone through at night, the visions I'm having?!" She said demanding to know. "Is his pain the only one's that matters to you at all? What about mine?! How is it his pain's greater than mine? Do you know what it is I see on these hands?" She told the Medic holding them up before her to see. "Go ahead, guess what it is I see on them every day and every nightmare since that I killed Sasuke, go on." She said as she knew they wouldn't see the blood.

Shizune looked on at her sadness in her eyes, they didn't deserve this, neither deserved to go through this torment that they've been going through. They were both broken, both physically and spiritual with what had happened.

"Please, Sakura listen to me." Shizune said in a pleading tone to her. "You have got to talk to one another. It's the only way for either of you two to ever heal is if you do. You are both going to die at this rate." The apprentice to the Slug Sannin told her and she looked on at him. "I've enjoyed the both of you since I first met you two three years ago and I don't want to watch either of you go through this anymore."

Sakura looked on at the older woman as stinging tears were in her eyes. "If he wants to talk to me, he can come to me, he knows where I live. I'm not going to drag and crawl up to him and beg him to forgive me for doing what was needed to be done. I'll talk whenever he's ready to see me."

The medic was quiet before turning around and leaving.

As Shizune made her way she passed a hallway and a figure was seen leaning against it waiting for her.

"How'd it go?" Kakashi asked her.

"No good, Sakura won't talk or attempt to mend things unless he comes to her."

"Naruto's the same way I'm afraid. He said she's going to have to see him first before he'll try to patch things up between. Neither want to admit they was wrong and the other was right over Sasuke."

"Both hanging onto foolish pride, it sounds as if its worse than we thought." Shizune said shaking her head. "I'm afraid it looks hopeless, I don't know what we can do. Both of them are going to die at this rate." She said and wiped a tear away. It was hard enough she was worried everyday she'd hear the news from someone that Tsunade had given out and was beyond recovery, but to lose two more precious people?

"Indeed, but an intervention must be made and the two must talk to one another before its too late for both of them." Kakashi said and she nodded in response. "Akatsuki is mobilizing soon and we need everyone in Konoha, the Elemental Nations in fact, from the highest to the lowest whatever their position to be ready for what is going to happen I'm afraid." He said and Shizune grimly looked on.

"I know," A voice said and they saw the Kazekage standing there as Gaara had been at Konoha for some time. Helping the village and using his sand to help rebuild. Suna was also preparing for what was about to happen. "Naruto and Sakura's hearts are shattered, they're just barely hanging on." He said and the two looked on at the young Kage as he could sense the ordeal they were going through. "The two have given up on living it seems and are willing to let death overtake them after all that has happened. You sense it as well as I. They cannot last much longer, only if they are together can they start to heal." Gaara said to Kakashi and Shizune who looked on.

"We must do something to help the two, before its too late for either of them."

Later that day, Naruto received word from one of Kakashi's dogs and Suna's symbol was on it. He was told to come to a specific spot as he was being given a mission, a task that would take him out of The Village for two to three days.

Happy that'd he be getting away from this place and a new change of scenery, Naruto made his way to the place which was in the bazaar.

As that happened, Sakura at her home saw a Slug appear and she was given a message to report to a meeting. She was told that the remaining agents of Akatsuki had been found out that they were planning on poisoning and killing a daimyo and she was needed to go undercover for the mission she was going to be assigned to stop it.

Not thinking twice about it, Sakura got her stuff and made her way to the place where she'd be filled in on at.

Neither suspected or knew that the other entered the building and was approaching the room where they were told to met up.

Absently they stood before the door on opposite sides of the building unaware of who was going to be there when they opened it

Their hands reached out against the doorknob and twisted it.

Naruto opened the door…

Sakura opened the door…

Each opened it at the same time opening the separate doors and the first person they saw standing across the room was each other.


	5. Chapter 5

"What are you doing here?" Naruto demanded a scowl appearing on his face as he stared ahead at the other person in the room.

"I could ask you the same thing." Sakura replied to him as she looked on at him. For the first time, the two were alone in a room together. "It appears we've been tricked into coming here." She said with a frown as she came to the conclusion.

"To heck with this, I'm getting out of here." Naruto said and turned to walk out of the room. But a barrier then appeared blocking his exit.

Naruto punched it as hard as he could but it didn't give way as it just reformed itself. "You either let me out now or I swear I'm gonna kick your ass!" He demanded to whoever it was responsible for this. He got no answer and he let out a growl as he was stuck with the last person he wanted to be with right now.

"Forget it, don't think you can't just slam your head into it and make it disappear." Sakura told him as she walked over to the couch in the middle of the room. "It's clear that somebody wants us to talk to each other."

Looking on at the scene the ninja listened in at the situation and hearing their voices.

"Now that they're alone together, maybe now they can finally put a stop to these antics and start talking to one another." Kakashi said as he had trapped them in there

"That, or they're gonna start killing each other." Shizune told him.

"That could possibly happen as well."

Naruto paced around the room like a lion in a cage gritting his teeth as he walked. A look of anger on his face as he made his way.

Sakura had sat on the lone couch in it and was paying him no mind at what he was doing. She sat there quietly not saying a word as the only sound was his angry grunts.

"I hope you're happy." Naruto snarled at her.

"I don't like this anymore than you do Naruto," Sakura told him. "And you can stop blaming me for everything that's gone wrong and try growing up for a change."

Naruto whipped his head around to glare at her and got ready to burst but took a deep breath trying to keep under control. "Keep quiet." He told her in an annoyed tone and Sakura huffed at him. Naruto eventually sat down on the couch across from her. "How long are they going to keep us in here?" He grumbled outloud not liking the situation one bit.

"Apparently as long as they want to." Sakura told him

"Well they're gonna be waiting a long time then." He proclaimed.

Silence reigned through the room as neither said anything for several minutes. Neither paying attention to the other. Not even the sound of their breaths were heard as they sat there as time passed.

"Instead of being stuck here," Naruto finally said. "We could be out celebrating and having fun, all of us, me, Sasuke and you." He told the pinkette. "Instead he's dead and we're left to rot in this damn place." He said and Sakura narrowed her eyes at him.

"If you had just hadn't shown up and stayed out of the way, none of this would've happened. I would've brought him back unconscious if I had to and everything would be back to normal." He said bitterly to her and Sakura had enough

"You're such a child." Sakura told him at how he was acting. "It's not going to work that way Naruto and you knew it. If you dragged him back you honestly think that things would just go back to normal? It'd be a week at most before he ran off again."

"You didn't know that." Naruto protested. "How do you know he wouldn't have stayed with us?" He demanded to know

Sakura shook her head. "Did you ever stop and look at him Naruto? Actually look at him and see past the twelve year old boy in The Academy? We saw him react, we all heard every word he said. How he was going to raze Konoha to the ground. Kill everyone we care about. Don't you remember Grass? What he did when we met him there with Yamato and Sai? How he showed no complaints or hesitation about attacking or trying to kill us there?" She said recalling the memories of past incidents when they met their former teammate. "That wasn't our teammate standing back there in Iron no matter how much we wanted to believe it was, that was a rabid beast who was attacking everything in sight."

"I just needed time to talk to him!" Naruto said to her raising his voice. "All I needed was a little more time so that I could get through to him. But you had to go and put a damn kunai in his back!"

"We had three years Naruto!" Sakura said raising her voice back to him. "Three years we had the chance to bring him back and he didn't want to come back! If we couldn't get him to even consider coming back during that time than he wasn't planning on ever doing so, if he was even once thinking about coming back he would've done so. But he didn't." Sakura told him, recalling everything they had gone through and how they had pleaded with him but were refused and were meet with assaults. "Not once did he ever show any sign of wanting to come back and join us. We both know he would've left Orochimaru's side immediately if he ever wanted to come back, even after he killed him, but he chose not to." She told him

"What about my promise? Huh? What about that?" Naruto said to her recalling to her what he said before the ill fated mission so long ago. "A promise of a lifetime, I promised I would bring him back. You begged me to make it remember? You pleaded with me to bring him back for you." He told her and she recalled how pitiful she looked and acted that terrible day when everything went wrong. Tears streaming down her face as she selfishly put her own wants ahead of others. And what she got in return was Naruto on death's door due to her own pathetic desires. "Everything I've done this whole time was for you. I promised I would bring Sasuke back so Team 7 could be together. Every lesson I learned, every day I trained, it was all so we could be brought back as one. Do you not realize how much I've sacrificed all this time for it?"

"We both made sacrifices Naruto, and I told you at Iron that I didn't want you doing this anymore. That I didn't care about him anymore."

"You was lying!" Naruto responded to her

"I was not!" Sakura said to him. "That wasn't a lie no matter how much you want to twist it around or think that you knew me, I was telling you the truth back there. I wanted you to stop this foolishness as you were going to get killed by it. I told you that and said it for your sake, not my own." She told Naruto. "You were going to run yourself to death, how many times did we see you look ready to drop unconscious due to how much you overpushed yourself?"

"Don't you remember Shikamaru after Asuma was killed?" She asked him. "He went after his murderer without stopping, and you approved of what he did."

"That's different, the bastard was a psychopath who killed a lot of people." Naruto protested to her in an angry tone that she would think that he was anything like The Akatsuki member. "We all saw the grief Shikamaru, Ino and Choji as well as Kurenai went through thanks to him. You can't compare Sasuke to him at all."

"And what of The Samurai who Sasuke killed?" She countered back. "What are you going to tell their families and loved ones over what he did. What about their grief and the pain they went through when he killed them? How are they suppose to react to losing their fathers, husbands and sons?" Sakura said to Naruto. "What would you say to them when they asked you why you let the man who killed them walk free because he was our teammate once?"

Naruto had no answer for her at what he would say to them as Sakura waited.

"This is ridiculous, I'm sure he's laughing it up wherever he's at enjoying watching us like this." Sakura said bitterly shaking her head wondering how much joy Sasuke was getting out of seeing this in the afterlife and Naruto was silent not saying anything. Despite being dead, in the end it looked like he had won and gotten what he wanted after all.

"This isn't looking good." Shizune murmured. "We should stop this." She said as it was clear they weren't going to do anything as their efforts had been in vain.

"Not yet." Kakashi said as he listened on with her. "Let's wait a bit more. I'm not giving up just yet."

Silence filled the room as neither said anything for a long time. They just sat there paying no attention to the other or even looking at their direction. Sakura took the gloves off her hands and looked at them sadly, still seeing it on them. And it seemed as though it was spreading all over them and onto her wrists now.

"Why do you keep looking at your hands like that?" Naruto said as he caught her doing that. She always seemed fixated on her hands and he wanted to know why

"Naruto, just, just leave me alone." Sakura said solemnly speaking up. "I don't care anymore about Sasuke, the planned coup his family did or this stupid war that's gonna happen. I just wanna be left to my own devices and life anymore. I'm done with it all." Sakura said to him as she averted her look from him

"If you want to blame me, fine. I guess it really is my fault that everything has happened," She told him. "I made you make that stupid promise because I was so damn stupid and still thinking I was living in a romantic dream and refusing to face reality with what was going on with him and made you go through hell."

She went to stand up and leave when a hand reached out and grabbed her wrist and she turned her head to look back at him as Naruto had stopped her.

"B, the brother of The Raikage gave me an message with an offer the other day." Naruto said suddenly. "He wants me to come meet him on some secret island so he can train me." He said surprising her a bit. "To help me get better control of The Fox….and I'm going there in the morning, alone."

"What?" Sakura said a bit surprised at the news. "Naruto, you can't just-"

"Sakura, right now, I can't be here and be near you. Near Kakashi, near…Sasuke. I gotta get outta here for some time."

"Naruto you can't leave now, what about the war?"

"Everyone would be fine without me, after all they got you. I need to do this as I can't be here right now. There's too much stuff here for me, I gotta clear my head." He told her looking on at her. "I have to do this for my sake. This is the worst place for me to be right now. I'm going to be driven insane if I stay here any longer. I'm going there and I don't knew when I'll be back." He said as he wasn't looking at her. "You can say I'm running away again if you want but it doesn't matter to me. Too much has happened here, I can still hear the screams and sounds from when I fought Pein when I walk through the streets and reminded of how Konoha got leveled. I'm going someplace where I'm not constantly reminded of all that's happened." He said as she was the only person who knew or was told about this. That he was leaving and going to meet up with The Eight Tailed Beast Vessel

"I'm going there tomorrow and I don't know how long until I'll be back. Days, Weeks, Months, I don't know how long it'll take." He told the medic. "And I would have gladly went through hell without you even having to ask."

"At least they've finally stopped yelling at one another." Kakashi mused and seeing that there wasn't going to be much fruit gained from this undid the barrier but neither noticed it. "Perhaps more time is needed for them to heal." He said and Shizune nodded as they departed.

"I didn't do any of this to hurt you Naruto," Sakura told him. "I never intended for you to be in pain or suffer." She said to the blonde

"…We'll discuss what we're going to do when I get back Sakura, I've got a lot to do these upcoming weeks." Naruto told her. "I'll see you later I guess. Take care of the others while I'm gone." He said and turning around walked out the room exiting and leaving her there.

Sakura watched him leave as she thought back to that day as she saw Sasuke charging the Chidori preparing to kill Naruto and her standing there with the poisoned kunai in hand. She replayed all the images in her head of what had happened ending with her stabbing him.

"You are certain you want to do this?" Kakashi said to him the next morning as he was preparing to leave and had stopped and told him what was happening. The sun beginning to rise overhead shining on the reconstructed village. "I could go with you, or at least have an escort for it."

"I need to be alone for this. I know you mean well but this is something I feel as though I need to do by myself. If anyone comes along, they'll just hinder me on it I'm afraid." Naruto said as he had a pack slung across his shoulders for the trip which would take him a couple days to get there he had been told.

"Madara Uchiha is still out there, and he'll try and get you if he discovers you alone. At least have someone escort you until you reach the meeting spot where B is wanting to meet you."

"Fine, they can catch up to me, but they're not to get involved and will head back once I get there." Naruto said comprising and the grey haired man nodded his head in agreement. "They'll be needed here more for the war than stuck with me."

"Good luck Naruto. I pray for your success and for Sakura helping Tsunade recover as well." Kakashi said to him and Naruto saluted him softly before turning around to exit the village.

"Naruto," Kakashi's voice called out to him and he turned around

"You still have deep feelings for her," Kakashi said to him. "Despite everything that's happened recently you still do." He told Naruto. "No matter how you feel right now, in your heart you still love Sakura."

"Goodbye Kakashi," Naruto said and turned and walked away as he departed his figure shrinking in the distance


	6. Chapter 6

"Man you suck, if you performed like that you'd be booed right off the stage." The dark skinned man said to his counterpart who was on the ground.

Naruto pulled himself off the ground glaring at the man who looked on at him not impressed with his performances.

"Gotta say foxy," Killer B, the brother of The Raikage and the vessel of the Ox said to him. "How did you put the hurt on that Pein guy if this is all you got?" He asked Naruto who stood across from him.

Naruto was with him at the place he had told him to meet him, which turned out to be an island on the back of a giant turtle. He had spent the past time here training with him so to help him get better control but thus far, Naruto hadn't improved at all with the training. He was having trouble connecting with the fox as nothing was going right.

"Let's continue," Naruto said ignoring him.

"Uh uh," B responded to him. "There's no point in doing this now, this is just wasting our time. You've gained nothing at all since we started."

"If that's the case, then thanks for inviting me here, but I'm going to head back to the mainland." Naruto said thinking this whole thing to be an utter pointless venture. He'd been better off training on his own than coming to this place.

B stopped him drawing one of his swords out to prevent him from going.

"Your heads either all up in the clouds or shoved straight up your rear, that's what holding you back man. Need to get that problem fixed or else this is a waste of time and the only thing worth staying here for is some bear jerky ya dig?"

"So you're a ninja, a rapper, and part time shrink. What job don't do you do?" Naruto dryly asked him.

"Enough spewin and talkin' its time to get serious. Come along fox," B said sheathing his sword and turned and walked away and Naruto reluctantly followed him. The two went and Naruto saw the giant bears that dwelled on this place but the beasts paid them no attention as he walked with him.

They walked for an half hour until B stopped and motioned for Naruto to look ahead. The teenager did and looking on saw a body of water before them.

"It's a pond." Naruto said looking on at it. Came all this way just for a simple pond.

"Bingo, but that just ain't no ordinary pond. It's very special." The Eight Tailed Jinchuurki said to him. "I went and put my foot in it myself when I was about your age or so." He said and Naruto looked on at him a bit dubious of his claims.

"Step in the center of it Fox, though I'm tellin' ya now. If you falter and aren't able to do it, you're gonna die." B told him his tone grim but Naruto made his choice.

Naruto walked and stepped foot in the water and made his way to the center. He stood there as the only sound was the ripples of the water.

"This is stupid," He muttered minutes later as nothing was happening. This was wasting his time, here he needed to train and all he was doing was getting himself wet for no reason. He turned his head to give B a dirty look thinking he had tricked him

Just as he got ready to get out he suddenly felt something pulling at his leg and the next thing he knew he was pulled under and disappeared without any sign of him.

B squatted down not paying any attention to his disappearance and pulled out a scrap of paper and pencil and tapped it against his cheek, thinking up what would be best.

Naruto found himself in an empty place. Looking on, he saw nothing around him. No sign of anything. The only thing there was an empty grey space all around him

"Where the heck am I?" He mumbled to himself looking on as he had no clue where he was.

"You who's mind is filled with rage, what is the reason for you coming here?" A voice said suddenly and Naruto looked all around trying to find out the source of where it was coming from but didn't see anyone around him for miles.

"I'm here to get training, so I can master my power." Naruto answered as he folded his arms across his chest.

"No," The voice said suddenly. "You are here because your mind is darkened and inner anger has consumed you. Recent events that has happened has consumed you and is on the verge of overwhelming you, if it happens you will never be able to find peace."

Naruto listened on to whoever it was that was talking, "If that's the case then show me how I'm suppose to keep it from consuming me then." He said in a dry tone.

"For that to happen, you must confront your demons that have engulfed you."

Naruto was expecting The Fox to appear but to his surprise, the Bijuu didn't show up. Instead a girl with pink hair and green eyes appeared in front of him.

"She is the source of your recent anger that has engulfed you is she not?" The being said as Sakura stood in front of him. Naruto gritted his teeth but didn't say anything in response. "I see that the two of you are both on the same path of despair. Standing on a thin edge of a knife, one step is all that would take to fall into it and never be able to recover." The being said to him as Sakura disappeared

"So then how do I keep myself from doing it then?" Naruto asked outloud.

"There are questions that you must answer." He was told and Naruto saw someone else standing in front of him.

It was Kakashi. "For what reason do you hold such an vendetta against her?" The being said speaking out of Kakashi's mouth with his voice.

Naruto narrowed his eyes. "She killed our teammate, our best friend!" He answered

"If that's so, then why did she?"

"She…She did it to save me. She says she did for that reason but a whole lot of good its done for us." He told the voice who then shifted and changed into Tsunade.

"Sasuke sought to kill everyone in Konoha, for believing that they took joy in his Clan's demise and were laughing at him. What has anyone in Konoha ever done to deserve to be killed by him? Who there wronged or slighted him before?

"Danzo did!"

"And he was slain in the end, but Sasuke decided it was not enough and vowed to kill them all. Would you have let him kill me as well?" She asked before changing into Iruka Umino. "Or me?" The Chunin asked before changing into Teuchi and his Daughter. "Or us?"

"No! I wouldn't have let him kill anyone in Konoha!" Naruto protested as the being then changed into Gaara.

"And yet you refused to fight him." He was told. "Numerous times you encountered him and numerous times he attacked you with no hesitation. What were you going to do when he came to Konoha intent on slaughtering its inhabitants?"

"I would've stopped him!"

"Like beforehand?"

The image then changed into Yamato. "At Orochimaru's base in Grass, who refused to fight against Sasuke?" The ninja demanded to know.

"I didn't know his strength or abilities at that time, it was my first time seeing him in years!" Naruto protested recalling it. "I, I couldn't bring myself to fight him."

"Why not?"

"Because he was my friend that's why!"

"Even though he attempted to kill you there with no remorse?"

The image to his surprise then turned into him, no not him, but his younger self, when he was but a rookie Genin.

"Who threw the fight against Sasuke in the Valley of The End?" His twelve year old self asked. "Who refused to counter his Chidori and instead decided to aim at his hitai-ate knowing what was gonna happen when you did it?"

"I…I…I did!" Naruto shouted angrily. "I threw it, I let him win that!"

"Why did you?" The younger self asked.

"I, I would've killed him! If I had used my Rasengan against his Chidori back there than I would've killed him! I was in a no win situation there!" Naruto said as he thought back to all that had happened as the image then turned into Hiruzen Sarutobi.

"Sometimes I'm afraid there's no happy scenario in life no matter what you chose to do. There are things in life you cannot ignore no matter how hard you wish that it doesn't exist." The Third Hokage said to him before vanishing.

"There was another way!"

"Was there? Was there truly another way? What could it have been that you would've done?"

"I…I…" Naruto stuttered trying to think of an answer. "I don't know, I couldn't think of anything to stop him. I just thought if he came back and saw everyplace we used to hang out and been to together he'd stay with us."

"So you admit then that there was no other way to stop him?"

"I did everything I could!" Naruto shouted at the being. "Every time I trained, every action and choice I made these past years, I did what I thought was best for everyone! So that the best outcome would be for everyone's sake!"

"And she did as well." The being said before transforming back into her as she stood in front of him. "Just as you did, she made the choice just as you did in which she believed would be the best outcome for it." The being said back in its own voice as Sakura stood silently before him. "Why do you continue to hate her so? Everything she has done, she did for you knowing what would likely happen when she killed him. The burden she placed upon you was going to kill you as she saw what was happening."

"I know!" Naruto said pain in his heart. "I know she did what she thought was best but…" His voice faltered as he looked down.

"Stop hating her and yourself over what has happened." The being said and Sakura put her hand on his cheek. "It's not her fault, it's not your fault. It's not anyone's fault for what happened. Life can be either happy or cruel at times." The being said to him and Sakura looked on at him sadness in her eyes. "Can't you see that the both of you have suffered enough? Why do the two of you continue to let your hearts' be shattered?" It said and Sakura began to fade away. Naruto reached out to grab her but his hands went through her body as Sakura looked on saying nothing as she disappeared forever

"What if the positions were reversed?" The being asked and Naruto saw himself back in Iron, he was looking on as the memory played out before him but instead Sasuke was preparing to kill Sakura with his Chidori. Sakura was standing there looking on ready to take the blow as she wasn't defending herself in anyway. Naruto's eyes widened in horror as he saw what was gonna happen. He went to stop him but his body wasn't moving as Sasuke prepared to charge at her.

Only for a different him to appear and blast Sasuke from behind with a Rasengan, blowing a hole through his body and killing him before he could unleash his attack. Sakura screamed out loudly at what she saw as Sasuke died by the other Naruto's own hands who looked on with remorse but saw no other choice in what to do.

"If things had gone differently, if you had killed him instead back there, would you want Sakura to hate you forever?" The being asked as Naruto found himself back in the empty place. "Would you want her to never speak to you again and refuse to accept anything you said about what needed to be done? Would you have let what's happened to you two still happen if that had happened instead?"

"No, I, I wouldn't want her to hate me." Naruto said looking on as he saw again the positions reversed with Sakura standing before Sasuke's headstone having died by his hands and him looking on from afar at the sight. "I'd never, ever want her to hate me." He said solemnly as he looked on as he slowly realized what he had put Sakura through with how he had acted.

All this time he had lashed out against her, refusing to even listen to a word she said. More concerned with how his feelings were hurt than what she was going through. This whole mess started back at Sasuke's grave when he had yelled at her. He had shoved her away back there when she had tried to talk to him forcing her to do the same to him as he was acting the same way she had accused him of.

If neither had done it, if he hadn't had that outburst leading her to yell back at him, than maybe they wouldn't be in this situation. They would have eventually accepted what happened despite the pain they were in from it and instead of being like this, they would have begun to heal.

"I've made mistakes in how I've handled things. I have to face the consequences of what I was doing. Sasuke, Sasuke crossed the line when he vowed to kill everyone in Konoha! There are things you can't let people do no matter how much of a friend they were once before. I didn't want to see it, I know everyone including me wanted him to come back so we could be whole again, but Sasuke didn't want to come back as he was harming innocents! He'll always be one of my precious people but I can't overlook the things he did any longer. I can't let my anger of what's happened control what I do from here on out! Sakura isn't a murderer!"

A glow surrounded the place as Naruto looked on.

"You may go back now." The being said to him as Naruto was engulfed by the glowing light.

Naruto emerged from the pond soaking wet as he coughed up water his arms flailing as he swam to the shore and pulled himself out.

"Looks like ya done it Fox." B said as he was writing down lyrics on a sheet of paper the whole time while waiting for him "So, now your mind is clearer than a nice dream yeah?" He asked him

"Yeah, I'm ready now." Naruto said as his voice and tone had changed as he was finding peace with what had happened. "It hurts, Sasuke's passing hurts a lot and I know it'll likely stay within me for a long time as I'll always remember the good days and time we had with him. She's thinking the same way as well. But I can't let it just consume me like its been as well as staying angry at Sakura for what she did. I…I understand now why she had done what she did back at Iron. We both held out on the faintest of hopes that Sasuke would come around but she saw it before I did or was refusing to see it. She regrets what she had to do I know she does, but she was right, she didn't ever have any intention of harming me. I was just being so angry at her and refusing to see it. I'll never forget our time together as Team 7 but I cannot allow that to overlook everything else that has happened. If our positions had been reversed, I'd want her and Sasuke to stop me before I wound up hurting someone who didn't deserve to be hurt."

"Good, now then let's get to work and see if Ol' Nine Tails is in the mood to cooperate with you ya?"

Naruto went with him now ready after having finally found peace with all that had happened.

A coffin was shown standing upright, on its side were numerous other coffins as well and they had been opened or broken out of. It was the sole one that was still closed amongst them.

The lid of the coffin opened slowly with a creaking sound and out stepped its occupant, stepping foot onto the ground. Looking on he realized that he was amongst the living again and could easily guess the reason why he was no longer dead.

He brought a hand up to his face and looked on before clenching it tightly as he recalled what had happened, his untimely demise as he remembered the piercing sting of the kunai into his back.

He remembered it all, charging his attack, after having avenged the first of his clan's murderers and was preparing to dispose of the last remnant that would hold him back as he would remove any lingering sentiments or threads that would potentially stop him. Only to be cut down and his revenge thwarted by the one person he never expected would interfere. But he had learned from that and would never ever allow that to happen again now that he was alive once more.

"Sakura…you killed me back there." The ninja said as his eyes then turned red knowing who had done it and was responsible for his passing. "Allow me to return the favor the next time we meet." Sasuke Uchiha, having been resurrected from the dead said vowing to kill her first.


End file.
